Improved railway-car-body elevator



R. WELLS.

Car-Body Elevator.

Patented Sept. 7, 1869.

all!

UNITED PATENT QFFI-GE.

REUBEN \VELLS, OF JEFFERSONVILLE, IITDIANA.

IM PROVED RAI LWAY-CAR-BO DY ELEVATG Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 9 1,680, dated Septem 1869- To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, REUBEN hum, of Jet? fersonville, inthe county of Clarke and State of Indiana, have invented a new and Improved Gar-Body Elevator; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had-to the accompanying drawing, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to an improved apparatus for elevating car-bodies ed the trucks, for transferring them from one set of trucks to another, as a means for transferring freight to roads of different gages, instead of unloading it from the cars of one road to those of another, the bodies being adapted to trucks of various gages; and tracks of various gages are placed over the apparatus, so that a car of one gage maybe run upon the apparatus and have the body lifted off and suspended until the trucks may be run away and trucks of another gage run under the body and the latter lowered upon it.

The apparatus consists of elevating-tables, preferably four in number, suitably adjusted to take under the bolsters of the car-bodies, and resting upon four levers, having either fixed or adjustable rests at one end, with their moving ends converging upon the vertically-movin g table of a hydraulic elevator located centrally between the first-mentioned elevatingtables, by which the latter are elevated or de pressed to raise or lower the ear-bodies, as hereinafter more fully specified.

Figure 1 represents alongitudinal elevation, partly sectioned, of my improved apparatus. Fig. 2 represents a plan view. Fig. 3 represents an end view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A represents a section of a railroad-track, whereon cars of three different gages may be run.

B represents elevating-tables, arranged in suitable vertical guides B outside of the rails, two on each side of the track, and about the distance apart of the'length of the ear-bodies between the centers of the bolsters resting on the lovers 0, which. levers have suitable rests D for their outer ends. Their free ends converge at and rest upon the vertically-movmg table E of a hydraulic elevator, I centrallly located under the track between the four tables B B. These latter tables are provided at their tops with sumiortiugjacks G, adjustable both vertically and to or from the track horizontally.

When a car-body is to be transferred the.

car is moved over the mac] 1i ne andproperly adjusted so that the jacks will rise up under the frame of the car. \Vater or other fluid is then forced into the elevator I! under the piston I thereof by any suitable means, by which the several jacks are elevated evenly irrespective of the disposition of the weight of the load n the car, carrying the ear body sufficiently above the trucks to permit the latter to. be

moved away, leaving the body on the jacks, I

where it is suspended until another set of trucks of a different gage are run under. 2 The body is then lowered thereon by allowing the water to escape from the elevator F by opening a valve. In this way the transfer is made much more cheaply and with less damage to the freight than by the present method.

As an economical means of operating the elevator I an accumulator or vertical cylinder having water in it and a he vy movable weight above it, and suitable pipe-connections with the said elevator F, may be used to force the water therein, the water being pumped into the said accumulator by a constantly-moving device, maintaining a supply from which the elevator F may be rapidly filled when required, and this I propose to combine with my improved car-body elevator.

Care is taken to locate the track centrally between the elevators B, so that the centers of the platforms and the cars will always coincide.

I do not desire to limit myself to the arrangements herein shown of the elevators B, levers, and jacks,-as many other arrangements may he obviously made to answer the purpose well.

Having thus described in y invention, what Ielaim as new, and desire to secure by :Letand provided with jacks, adjustable, substau-- te'rsPatent, is 1 tially as specified.

1. The combination, with a railroad-track, 3. The arrangement of the traoks centrally of vertically moving elevators, levers, and between the elevators B,substant1a-lly as specihydraulic elevator when arrangedfor elevat fied. ing car-bodies from the trucks for the removal of the latter and substitution of others and lowering the bodies again, substantially as Witnesses: specified. JOHN HIGGINS,

2. The elevators 13, combined with the track JOHN GALLAGHER.

REUBEN WVELLS. 

